7/29/2011 8:04:23 AM
SPIRITUAL DIARY
My Worship Time Focus: He had faith to wait
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Nehemiah 2:1-3
Message of the verses: “1 ¶ And it came about in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, that wine was before him, and I took up the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had not been sad in his presence. 2 So the king said to me, "Why is your face sad though you are not sick? This is nothing but sadness of heart." Then I was very much afraid. 3 I said to the king, "Let the king live forever. Why should my face not be sad when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies desolate and its gates have been consumed by fire?’”
Today’s SD begins the second chapter of Nehemiah and also the second chapter of Dr. Wiersbe’s commentary on Nehemiah “Standing Firm in the Face of Opposition.” The title of this second chapter is “The Mountain Starts to Move” and it covers the 2nd chapter of Nehemiah. As I mentioned in many earlier SD’s there is a key at the introduction of most of the chapters in Dr. Wiersbe’s books that help to unlock where he is going with the chapter, and in this chapter he writes, “This chapter describes three evidences of Nehemiah’s faith. As we study these evidences of faith, we must examine our own hearts to see whether or not we are really walking and working by faith.”
The scene now shifts from the month of Chislev to the month of Nisan which means that four months have passed since Nehemiah’s brother gave his report to Nehemiah. Four months can either be a short time or a long time depending on what is going on in one’s situation. I believe that it was a long time for Nehemiah, and it was a long time to be saddened over what was going on in Jerusalem. Nehemiah was patiently waiting on the Lord in order to have his prayers answered.
I want to interject something here that is probably the reason that God waited this long to answer Nehemiah’s prayer. When I was studying the book of Daniel last summer in our Sunday school I was reminded of something that I was taught very early in my Christian life, and that is what the prophecy in Daniel nine is all about. I took the time to listen to six sermons from John MacArthur to aid me in teaching this one lesson on Daniel nine last summer. When you try to put six hours of teaching into a one hour class it makes it difficult as to what to leave out. I will try and be brief here, however I believe it is important to realize why it was this day that the king answered the prayer of Nehemiah. The prophecy consists of 490 years and has a starting point and three more points in it. The first one is after 49 years of the beginning of the prophecy and that speaks of the rebuilding of Jerusalem, the temple and the walls and gates. The next stopping point comes 383 years after it starts and this is probably one of the most important parts of the prophecy for it was exactly 483 years after this very conversation between Nehemiah and the king, who will give a decree to Nehemiah, that the Lord Jesus Christ came into Jerusalem on a donkey offering Himself to be king, but was turned down. This is what we call Palm Sunday, and so I believe that this was the main reason that Nehemiah had to wait.
There are lessons that Nehemiah had to learn, and after reading this I know that there are lessons that God wants me to learn also. There are some verses that help to understand this passage a bit better that I want to include in this section. First of all Nehemiah was frightened and with good reason because he was the one who was to make sure that the kings wine was safe to drink and he looked sad. The king could have killed him no questions asked, but Proverbs 21:1 states “The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water He turneth it whithersoever He will.
As far as patience Hebrew 6:12 states “so that you will not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” As far as waiting look what Isaiah 28:16b tells us: “he that believeth shall not make haste (KJV).
Dr. Wiersbe writes that he has three favorite verses he leans on that give him comfort whenever he gets nervous and tries to rush before the Lord. Ex. 14:13, Ruth 3:18, and Psalm 46:10.
Dr. Wiersbe writes the following that I need to remember in the situation that I find myself in at this time: “True faith in God brings calmness to the heart that keeps us from rushing about and trying to do in our own strength what only God can do. We must know only how to weep and pray, but also how to wait and pray.”
Spiritual meaning for my life today: I suppose that it should not shock me to find that this lesson was exactly what I needed for what is going on in my life at this time. This has happened on many different occasions, and yet there are some days when I do this that it is not so meaningful to me, but I always learn from studying God’s word. You may not know what you ate for dinner two months ago, but you do know that it sustained you through out that day. I may not know what I studied two months ago, but I do know that it was worth studying because it was part of God Word. Today’s was very special to me.
My Steps of Faith for Today:
1. Not to rush before the Lord to get accomplished what I want get accomplished own my own, but to trust the Lord and wait patiently on Him to accomplish what He desires for me.
2. Continue to learn contentment.
3. Romans 12:1-2
4. Psalm 139:23-2
5. Proverbs 3:5-6
7/29/2011 9:30:31 AM
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